Yale spring practice notes

Yale’s spring session is underway. The Bulldogs got back on the field on Wednesday. The spring will culminate with the Blue-White scrimmage on April 18.

“It was a good first day,” Tony Reno said. “We’ve been doing things to increase speed, strength and technique drills. But it’s nice to add that football element to it now. Our focus in spring is increasing the quality of practice and do what we need to do to get better in all areas. Today was a good step in that direction.”

Some position changes of note…

Victor Egu bounced between OLB and ILB. He is playing ILB…Andrew Johnson has moved from QB to WR…Spencer McManes is playing LB instead of QB…Austin Reuland is now in the mix at RB. He played WR last year.

K Blake Horn was back on the field after missing last year with injury. He will compete for the placekicking duties. Also, DB Spencer Rymiszewski is back on the field after suffering a season-ending concussion last year.

Expect a competitive battle at RB between Candler Rich, Deshawn Salter, John Barton and Reuland.

A handful of players will compete for time at WR: Ross Drwal, Chris Williams-Lopez, Myles Gaines, Blake Rowlinson, Mike Siragusa, Robert Clemons and Matt Rubino.

Logan Scott, along with Rafe Chapple and Stephen Barmore will compete for the backup QB job. Chapple had a strong outing his first day.

A reader asked about QBs on the incoming recruit list. Tre Moore is the lone QB of the newcomers. Expect the incoming class to be made official in early April. Also, I spoke with Bo Hines last night. Expect a feature story on him coming up in the next few days.

What can we do to get rid of obnoxious comments like 12:23's latest? We can't be saying things like that about some of the best young men in America who are giving it their all in the classroom and on the field. It's shameful.

12:45..I couldn't agree more. These are not professional athletes making millions, but dynamic young men working 52 weeks a year at Yale outside the classroom to be the best they can be. Constructive observations and concerns properly positioned is fine, but negative personal assaults are wrong and should not be part of this blog.

Chris Good job reporting what is the practice schedule. Johnson is a good athlete with good speed and hands like wise Mcmanus switch to inside linebacker will take advantage of his football prowess. Would not be surprised if both make the two deep depth chart. Has Bedard missed two seasons in a row?

!2:23 Does not know his ass from a whole in the ground. Rich is a good quality back who runs hard,elusive and can catch the ball out of the backfield. Look to see more plays to him coming out of the backfield this year. Salter is also a quality back who may end up being the starter. Nice to have two quality backs coming back.

Feel sorry for Williams starting qb as freshmen turned into cannon fodder then relegated to non playing wide receiver with only realistic hope of playing his senior year on special teams. Special guy for sticking with program under these circumstances.

Ahh ... 12:23 what a genius. Rich is not a player. Sure that's why he was Hon. mention All Ivy because the other league coaches were joking. For that matter, our 4th string tight end that was also Hon. mention is just another wannabe hack in a position where we're weak. This clown has no clue!

Very nice piece about Bo Hines. Thank you, Chris. Interesting that he chose us after H recruited him the hardest in the Ivies. Nice going Coach Reno et al. And no, I am not related to any of the coaches by blood or marriage.

Honorable mention is not a joke in the Ivy’s. Many players do not get it and it must be earned. So 2:11 you are part idiot. However you are correct that there will be a substantial drop off from Rich to Varga. It is absolutely unfair to compare the 2, especially considering that Varga was one of the best to ever come out of Yale. Rich will in no way be on the level of Varga, ever, but he will be serviceable. As fans we just need to be hopeful that we can get something that can balance us between Rich, Salter, and whoever can provide the 3rd option (Barton, Reuland).

For us to be competitive next year our defense has to take a step up a level. We are going to need to be one of the best in the Ivy’s to regain our position from last year (competing for an Ivy championship) because we cannot expect to be the best offense in the Ivy next year also losing so much fire power. We shall see…

You heard it here first, Yale's offense will be even better next year. Take a second to examine the weapons we have at receiver. Clemons, Siragusa, and Drawl were all great players for us last year. With the return of Myles Gains, who made some big plays early in the season along with the addition of Bo Hines, Yale should have the best reviving corps in the Ivies. With all of the weapons we have on the perimeter, teams are going to have to take a man out of the box. This should free up plenty of running room for Rich, Salter and Barton. And don't forget that we have the best QB in Yale history coming back! This offense will shatter last years numbers.

Third recruiting class for Coach Reno will give depth that they haven't had. It's obvious that he and his staff can recruit so let's see how it all comes together. Most important coach at Yale right now is Emil Johnson. Get em' bigger, faster, and stronger.